Danny Edwards capitalized on his brother’s misfortune and posted his third victory of the season in the Girl Scouts 100 for the Crossroads Fuel Service/Sunoco Dealers Late Models, the featured event of Saturday evening’s NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series program at Langley Speedway.
Greg Edwards, Danny’s younger brother, was quickest during the afternoon qualifying session. Circling the .395-mile oval at 87.724 mph, he established a new record for the division, bettering his own mark from April of this year.
After a spin of the inversion wheel, Greg Edwards lined up on the outside of the front row as he and Mark Wertz, the second-fastest qualifier, simply swapped starting spots. Casey Wyatt and Danny Edwards made up Row 2, while Jeff Shiflett and Shawn Balluzzo were in Row 3.
Wyatt, a six-time winner in ‘06, was the source of some drama before the race ever got under way. As the field made its parade laps behind the pace truck, Wyatt suddenly ground to a halt just off Turn 2. He had to be helped back to the pits, where his crew diagnosed a dropped valve, bringing his night to a premature and disappointing end. He was credited with 15th place in the final rundown.
After Wyatt’s car was cleared from the track, the race got rolling with Wertz jumping out to the early lead. Greg Edwards settled into second, followed by Danny Edwards, Shiflett and Paul DeBolt.
Greg Edwards shadowed Wertz for the first seven circuits before launching a bid for the top spot. Exiting Turn 4 on lap 8, he drove under the leader and drew alongside, completing the pass in Turn 1 on lap 9.
At lap 20, Greg Edwards and Wertz were running in nose-to-tail formation. Third-place Danny Edwards, meanwhile, had fallen nearly half a straightaway behind. And, the margin continued to grow as the green-flag laps clicked off.
By lap 40, Greg Edwards had pulled away by three car-lengths over Wertz, who enjoyed a full-straightaway advantage over Danny Edwards.
The first caution flag appeared on lap 45, bunching the field. Caution flag #2 came out on the ensuing restart for a multi-car jumble in Turn 2. Kim Forrester, Greg Burgess and Brian Carter were all sidelined in the second incident.
Lining up for the restart, Greg Edwards maintained the lead, followed by Wertz, Danny Edwards, Shiflett and DeBolt. With Greg Edwards setting such a torrid pace, only seven cars remained on the lead lap.
Back under green, Greg Edwards and Wertz opened a three-length gap over Danny Edwards. Soon, though, Greg Edwards began to ease away, while Wertz began to slip into Danny Edwards’ clutches.
On lap 63, Danny Edwards ducked to the inside of Wertz in Turns 3 and 4. He nosed ahead at the stripe to take over second place and cleared Wertz’s machine in Turns 1 and 2 on lap 64. The exchange allowed Greg Edwards to pad his lead to four car-lengths.
On lap 67, the leaders ran up on several lapped machines. Greg Edwards broke free of the slower cars on lap 73, holding a three-length advantage. Wertz, meanwhile, had dropped nearly half a straightaway behind the Edwards brothers.
Operating with open track ahead of him, Greg Edwards headed into the final 10 circuits with a half-straightaway lead over Danny Edwards and seemed poised to notch his sixth victory.
The complexion of the event took a drastic turn on lap 94, however, as Greg Edwards suddenly dropped off the pace. With sparks spitting from beneath his car, Greg Edwards could only move aside as Danny Edwards caught and bypassed him in Turn 1 on lap 95.
As he reached Turn 2, Greg Edwards did a half-spin, prompting the last of the race’s three caution flags. Returning to the pits, it became evident that he had cut down a right-front tire. His crew bolted on a new tire and sent him back out.
Lining up for the final restart, Danny Edwards was the new leader, followed by Wertz, Shiflett and DeBolt. Greg Edwards was deployed at the back of the pack, in fifth, but separated from the top four by five lapped cars.
Under green for a six-lap dash to the checkers, Danny Edwards quickly darted away from Wertz, who was faced with a challenge from Shiflett.
On lap 96, Shiflett drove under Wertz in Turn 2 and edged ahead at the line to claim the runner-up spot. He cleared Wertz off Turn 2 on lap 97.
At the finish, Danny Edwards was the winner by 1.035 seconds over Shiflett. Wertz was third, while DeBolt and Greg Edwards completed the top five. Jeff Sampson was sixth, a lap down, followed by Douglas Crigger and J.J. Jensen, both two laps in arrears. Ross Clements and Kevin Morgan rounded out the top 10.
In Victory Lane after the race, Danny Edwards commented on his evening’s work and his brother’s late-race troubles: “We might not have had the best car. We hung in there. It appeared that Greg had a flat tire with about four, five or six to go. I thought I was starting to catch him there and I didn’t know why, but I guess I figured out after that tire starting going down. I saw the spark one time and, then, after that, it went down. But, we hung in there. We fought hard and we did a lot of work this week, trying to catch up. We’re getting a little step closer and we’re just glad to get here in Victory Lane.”
In the series standings, Danny Edwards has pulled to within two points of Greg Edwards for the top spot, 916-914. Wertz is third with 890, while Shiflett, with 848 points, leapfrogged Wyatt to move into fourth place. Wyatt is fifth with 844.
It’s important to note, however, that each Late Model driver’s two-worst finishes (or missed races) will be dropped from consideration before the final standings are tabulated.
In the “adjusted” standings, Greg Edwards leads Wertz by 10, 848-838. Danny Edwards is third with 834, followed by Wyatt with 806 and Shiflett with 778.
Greg Edwards can seal up the ‘06 Late Model championship by finishing fifth or better in next Saturday’s season finale for the division.

In the evening’s other feature events:

Dean Shiflett grabbed the lead on the opening circuit and showed the way to his sixth win of the year in the Super 8 Motels/Dunkum’s Machine Shop Grand Stock race, moving a step closer to claiming his second straight division title.
Brandon Hinson was the fast qualifier for the race, setting a new division record — 78.842 mph. His effort bettered Shiflett’s old mark, 78.742 mph, which was set on Aug. 12.
After the inversion, Hinson started third. Ricky Derrick moved to the pole with Shiflett alongside. Jason Leftwich shared Row 2 with Hinson, while Ryan Nester and Danny Harrell lined up in Row 3.
As the race got under way, Shiflett stayed to the outside of Derrick and eked out a half-car-length lead at the end of lap 1 and the margin grew even smaller on lap 2. On lap 3, though, Shiflett cleared Derrick on the backstretch to gain the clear-cut edge.
By lap 7, Shiflett had stretched his lead to five lengths over Derrick, who had a mirror-full of Hinson. The first caution flag waved on lap 8.
On the restart, Hinson swung to the outside of Derrick at the entrance to Turn 1. The two went door-to-door for most of a lap with Hinson taking the second spot off Turn 4. Within a couple laps, Hinson had driven away from Derrick by more than two lengths.
The second and third yellow flags flew on laps 11 and 15. The incident on lap 15 involved Nester and Leftwich, running fifth and sixth at the time. Both drivers were sent to the back of the pack.
Returning to green, Danny Harrell slipped under and past Derrick to gain the third position. On lap 17, Derrick returned the favor and moved back into third.
The fourth caution flag was displayed on lap 20 and officials began scoring the caution laps. Gathering for the restart, Shiflett, Hinson, Derrick, Harrell and Robbie Parker made up the top five.
Back under way, at lap 24, Harrell took another run at Derrick. This time, Derrick was able to fend off the advance. Shiflett, meanwhile, opened a two-length gap over Hinson and began to ease away.
Clawing his way from the rear of the field, Leftwich moved back into the top five on lap 31, scooting around Parker.
Nearing the finish, third-place Derrick began to rumble, closing to within a car-length of Hinson. Before that battle could develop, though, the fifth, and final, caution flag flew on lap 39. Since caution laps were counting, the race was extended beyond the scheduled 40-lap distance to provide a “green-white-checkered” ending.
On the restart, at lap 42, Shiflett and Hinson drove away, while Derrick dealt with another challenge from Harrell.
At the finish, Shiflett was the winner by 0.663-second over Hinson. Derrick was third, followed by Harrell and Leftwich.
In the standings, Shiflett now leads Derrick by 10, 548-538, with one race to go. Like Greg Edwards in the Late Models, Shiflett can secure the championship with a top-five run in next week’s finale.

Craig Firman, last season’s UCAR champion, took the lead for good on lap 7 and rolled to his first victory in the 25-lap Verizon Super Truck race, while Justin Ballo climbed atop the division standings with just one event left.
Carl Livingston, the points leader coming into Saturday’s race, was the fast qualifier, at 75.123 mph. He started fourth after the inversion. Firman and Hugo Belfiore shared the front row and Bill Mullis lined up to the inside of Livingston in Row 2. Bill Wallace and Tommy Nixon made up Row 3.
Firman grabbed the lead on the start, followed by Belfiore, Mullis, Livingston and Wallace. On lap 6, Belfiore pushed his truck to the head of the parade, while Livingston picked off Mullis for the third spot. A lap later, Firman regained the lead from Belfiore.
Mullis was forced to the pits on lap 8 as flames flickered from beneath his truck’s hood. He was able to exit the racing surface without causing a caution flag. Meanwhile, Livingston had tracked down Belfiore.
On lap 12, Livingston snagged the runner-up position from Belfiore. The brief tussle allowed Firman to extend his lead to six lengths. Livingston, however, quickly narrowed the gap.
With Firman carefully guarding the bottom groove, Livingston was left to look to the high side for a winning pass. He almost pulled it off on lap 20 when Firman went extremely low in Turns 1 and 2, dipping his left-side tires off the track for a moment. Firman composed himself, though, and held Livingston at bay.
Coming around to complete lap 24, the rear of Livingston’s truck broke loose off Turn 4. While Firman took advantage of the slip to open a two-length lead, Belfiore shot to Livingston’s outside.
Livingston tried to rally on the final circuit, but came up 0.650-second short as Firman held on for the win. Belfiore was third to the stripe, followed by Justin Ballo and Wallace.
During the post-race technical inspections, officials discovered an unapproved oil pan on Livingston’s truck and he was disqualified. The amended top five included: Firman, Belfiore, Ballo, Wallace and Nixon.
With Livingston’s ouster, Ballo, a longshot title contender at the start of the night, moved into first place. He leads Belfiore, the division’s ‘05 champ, by 14, 540-526. Livingston, meanwhile, has dropped into a third-place tie with Nixon, at 524.
Ballo can wrap up the ‘06 Super Truck championship by finishing seventh or better in next Saturday’s season-ender.

In the 25-lap E-Z Auto Rental UCAR feature, Robert Rusinyak started on the pole and wired the field for his first win of the year. Meanwhile, Randy Prillaman turned in a third-place run to clinch the series championship.
Prillaman was the fast qualifier for the event, at 69.716 mph. After the inversion, he started third. Rusinyak and Kevin Alves occupied the front row, while Glenn Healy Jr. lined up to the outside of Prillaman in Row 2. Dave Butler and Matt Hockaday started in Row 3.
Getting under way, Rusinyak grabbed the lead. Alves settled into second, followed by Prillaman, Healy and Butler.
On lap 2, Butler drifted wide in Turn 2 and gave way to Robbie Davis and Hockaday. A lap later, Hockaday slipped by Davis to move into fifth.
Healy went on the attack on lap 10, driving under Prillaman on the backstretch. He cleared Prillaman off Turn 4 to take the third spot.
Rusinyak extended his lead to three lengths on lap 16 when Alves had some difficulty disposing of a lapped car. Shaking free of the slower machine, though, Alves quickly made up the lost ground.
On lap 20, Healy ducked under Alves in Turns 1 and 2. Returning to the start/finish line, Healy held the position by a nose. He pulled ahead of Alves on lap 21 and brought Prillaman and Hockaday along with him.
At the finish, Rusinyak was the winner by 0.281-second over Healy. Prillaman was third, followed by Hockaday and Alves.
Prillaman’s third-place outing left him with an insurmountable 60-point lead over Alves in the division standings, 662-602. While other drivers compete to secure their final placing in the points rundown, Prillaman can use next Saturday’s race as a tuneup for the RaceCom of Virginia UCAR Nationals, to be held at Langley Speedway on Saturday, Oct. 14.

Rob Hughes scored his first win in a 20-lapper for the BBFlabradors.com Wolf Trucks. Starting second, he moved into the lead on lap 9 and paced the field to the checkers.
Michael Leech set the fast time in qualifying. His lap, at 76.043 mph, bettered his own division record from Aug. 26 and he got to keep the pole when a “0” was dialed up on the inversion wheel. Hughes lined up to his outside, while Jill Brinson and Jeff Sampson made up Row 2. Rickie Johnson and Michael Farmer occupied Row 3.
As the race got going, Leech jumped into the lead. Brinson tagged along with him to take over second place, dropping Hughes to third. The first caution flag appeared on lap 3.
Back under green, Hughes darted past Brinson and quickly closed in on Leech. On lap 9, Hughes powered past Leech on the outside to take the top spot, only to see the move negated by the second yellow flag.
When the race resumed, Hughes staged a repeat performance, sweeping around Leech for the lead. Hughes led lap 9 and stayed out front when the third yellow flag flew on lap 10.
On the restart, Hughes bolted to a four-length advantage. Behind him, Johnson and Sampson bypassed Brinson, kicking her back to fifth. A lap later, Johnson skated wide in Turn 2 and gave way to Sampson and Brinson. At the front, Hughes was on cruise control, half a straightaway ahead of Leech.
The fourth caution flag was displayed on lap 13. At that point, officials began scoring the caution laps. Gathering for the restart, Hughes, Leech, Sampson, Brinson and Johnson made up the top five.
Back under green, at lap 16, Hughes motored away from the field, while Sampson grabbed the runner-up spot from Leech, bringing Brinson with him.
At the finish, Hughes took the win by 1.110 seconds over Sampson. Brinson, Leech and Johnson rounded out the top five.
With only next Saturday’s race left on the schedule, Brinson holds a 48-point lead over Brad Perron and Farmer in the Wolf Truck standings. She has 392 points, while Perron and Farmer both have 344. Brinson can nail down the championship by simply starting the finale.

Buoyed by drafting assistance from teammates Casey Wyatt and David Phelps, Ashley Mullis rolled to victory in the evening’s opening event, a 20-lap contest for the HRKC Pro Winged Champ Karts.
Wyatt started on the pole, but dropped back at the beginning of the event, going in search of Mullis, who started fifth, and Phelps, who started last in the 13-kart field. Meanwhile, Danny Wyatt paced laps 1 and 2.
At the end of the second circuit, Mullis, Casey Wyatt and Phelps linked up and began to chase down leader Jeffrey Johnson, who took the lead from Danny Wyatt on lap 3.
The Mullis/Wyatt/Phelps juggernaut cruised into the lead on the fifth circuit. By the halfway mark, they were up by better than half a straightaway over fourth-place George Rowland, who had slipped around Johnson.
The only caution flag waved on lap 15, bunching the field for a six-lap sprint to the finish. Mullis, Casey Wyatt, Phelps, Johnson and Rowland made up the top five.
Back under green, the lead trio powered away, while Johnson and Rowland had to contend with a second drafting pack, which was headed by Cory Millard.
Coming to the checkers, Mullis, Casey Wyatt and Phelps remained bumper-to-bumper-to-bumper with Mullis picking up the win by 0.076-second. Wyatt was second, followed by Phelps.
Johnson emerged from a wild scramble to take fourth. He was nearly three seconds behind the race winner. Timmy Waltrip was fifth to the line. At the end, only three-quarters of a second separated fourth-place Johnson and Rowland, who slipped to ninth in the waning laps.
• • •
MEDIA CONTACT: Gary Daughtrey
Home: (757) 657-6741
Track: (757) 865-7223
E-mail: daughtrey@langley-speedway.com
NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series
at Langley Speedway - Hampton, VA
Girl Scout Night
Race Results
Saturday, Sept. 30, 2006